1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to devices having utility for storing various articles atop the roof of a vehicle. More particularly, it relates to a storage apparatus that is easily repositionable from a vehicle top to a vehicle side and vice versa to facilitate loading and unloading of miscellaneous items.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Several storage racks have been developed that are capable of being repositioned from a vehicle top to a vehicle side and back to the vehicle top. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,193,124 to Essling discloses a side-loading and discharging storage rack. The contribution to the art disclosed in that patent includes a drawer-like mechanism for facilitating side-loading and discharging.
Although the art is quite well-developed, there remains a need for a side-loading and discharging rack having an elegant design that requires only a minimum number of parts and which is accordingly light-in-weight and economical to manufacture. The ideal device would be mountable to an existing luggage rack and would safely lock into place when the vehicle to which it is mounted is in motion. Moreover, it should be operable with minimum force so that individuals lacking great upper body strength could still manipulate it without difficulty or strain.
However, in view of the art considered as a whole at the time the present invention was made, it was not obvious to those of ordinary skill in this art how the needed improvements could be provided.